Home Sweet Home
by TealyBob
Summary: Caroline, Bonnie, and Elena move into a duplex, while Elijah, Kol, Finn, and Klaus live in the other side. Relationships happen, problems happen, shit goes down. AU/AH
1. Chapter 1

Caroline grunted as her hip rammed into the side of her car. She couldn't see over the stack of boxes she was carrying. She hated moving. Well, that wasn't true. She loved moving, just hated the packing and unpacking. Elena and Bonnie were already inside, and Caroline was carrying in the remaining boxes out of the car. She walked to the left door of the duplex they had just rented out for school.

Knocking on the door, she shifted the boxes in her arms. She heard a laugh from inside and knew that Bonnie and Elena were already making themselves at home. There was jingling and then the door in front of Caroline swung open to reveal a smiling Elena.

"Hey!" Elena exclaimed. "That's the last of it." She stood back to allow Caroline into the 'house.' "Good luck finding a place for it to set."

As Caroline looked around, she realized what Elena was talking about. There were so many boxes, chairs and furniture around the room that she could hardly see the floor. She was in the living room, and a "hallway" was straight to the right that led into the kitchen. She'd been here before, to check out the place, but it looked completely different with all of the junk crowded on the floor.

Caroline heaved the boxes in her arms onto another stack next to the door. "What the hell?" she asked, not seeing how they could have gotten so many boxes.

"Apparently the other roommate already made herself at home," chimed in Bonnie. She stepped around what looked like cooking utensils.

"All of this is hers?" Caroline checked.

"Half of it," Elena confirmed.

"But I warn you now," Bonnie began. She kicked a box to the side and began walking towards the corner of the room. "Don't go into the kitchen," she instructed.

"Why?" Caroline said in a stern voice.

Bonnie found a tan couch and plopped down in it. When she was settled, she looked up to Caroline, curled her lip, and shook her head. "Just don't."

Caroline watched her for a few seconds, waiting for anything else. Curiosity got the best of her and she allowed her eyes to trail over the room until her head was turned to the right and she glanced into the section of the kitchen that she should have been able to see. But she couldn't even see the pale blue walls she knew were there. Instead there were stacks of pots, more cooking utensils, toasters, a mini fridge, and tons more that she couldn't identify.

Quickly, she inhaled and looked back to Bonnie and Elena with a fake smile on her face. "Alright!" she exhaled. "I'm just going to go out for a stroll." She opened the door behind her while watching the girls' reactions. They weren't surprised. This whole moving thing had caused Caroline a ton of stress and they knew this was just about to blow her over. "I'll be back...some time," she finished, turning abruptly and leaving as fast as possible.

When the door closed behind her, she leaned back on it with her eyes closed. Dear God, she began in her head, please don't kill me during all of this...

The sound of tires driving relatively close made her look up. Turning her head to the right, she saw a vehicle pulling up right behind her car. The driveway had room enough for two cars to park side by side, and another row of cars to park behind them. Only problem was, the cars in front would have no way of getting out if there was anything parked behind them.

Caroline frowned and began walking towards the car as it stopped running. She saw the outline of a guy in the driver's seat, but that was all she could make out because the sun was shining right on the windshield. Caroline was standing by the bumper of her car, by the front of the new car, when the door opened. "Hey!" she began immediately when she knew the guy would hear her. "You can't park there!" she squinted at the driver.

Slowly, a body emerged from the car. A tall body. And as Caroline watched him turn towards her with a bit of a sway, she saw it was an extremely good looking body. And so was the part of the face she could see. The other part was covered with some sunglasses. The guy looked like he was her age, early twenties. His hair was short and neatly spiked up in the front. His lips were thin, and his jaw was slightly...off, to put it. But still sexier than all-get-out. He was pale, but it looked good on him. He wore skinny jeans and a black, denim jacket over his plain, grey t-shirt. He propped his arms up on the top of his opened door and leaned over them. "Yeah? And why not?" he asked. He had a British accent, and it made Caroline's heart skip a beat.

"Because I can't get out if you're parked behind me," she explained like he was an idiot. She had a hand on her hip while the other one kind of waved around as she spoke.

The guy studied the way the cars were laid out. "So just drive though the grass," he said like it was obvious.

Caroline raised her eyebrows as him. "Drive through the grass?" she repeated like that was insane. "Are you crazy?"

His palms turned upward in a 'what' manner. "Will the lawn blow up if tires are rolled across it?" he checked.

"No," Caroline said back in a bit of an offended tone. "But it'll tear apart the grass and make the place look like a dump."

The guy looked at the duplex and Caroline saw his eyebrows rise. He inhaled slowly and began standing up from the door. "Yeah," he said sarcastically. "It's the lawn that might make the place look bad..."

"Ok," Caroline huffed, getting mad at him. "Who the hell are you, anyway?" she demanded.

He shut the door and took a step towards her, fiddling with the keys he had been holding. He was facing her now, and Caroline could clearly see his form and posture. He held himself high, like he should have been wearing a suit. He nodded towards the other side of the duplex. "I'm the one living in the other side of your house," he explained.

"Oh," Caroline realized. "You're Michael?" she double-checked.

The guy looked back to her and frowned. "Michael?" he repeated. He took a step forward and took off his sunglasses, squinting at the sun. "No," he corrected. Caroline was taken away by his green eyes. They were small, but perfect and completed his face. "I'm Kol," he introduced.

Caroline frowned and looked back to the other side of the house. "Umm, no," she mockingly chuckled. "I was told a Michael was living there," she informed him.

"Mikaelson," he changed the name, finally realizing what she meant. "Yeah, Kol Mikaelson."

Caroline took a breath. "Oh," she sighed, not liking she had just made a fool of herself for correcting him on something she had wrong.

He watched her for a few long seconds. His eyebrows rose and he inclined his head towards her. "You would be..."

Caroline jumped to attention, feeling stupid. "Caroline!" she replied quickly. She stuck her hand out. "Caroline Forbes."

Kol took her hand and shook it firmly. He released it and nodded. "Yeah, the Forbes girl. Right. Aren't there, like, four of you?" he asked, frowning.

"No," she answered. But then she remembered. "Well, yeah. But no." She pursed her lips, looking up while she looked for words. "It's me and my two friends, then some random girl we don't know yet," she explained, using a ton of hand gestures.

He nodded, showing he got it. "Right. So four of you," he answered his own question.

Caroline bit her lips at him, giving him an irritated look. "Yes, four." There was a bit of an awkward moment as they both tried to come up with more for the conversation. "How many of you are there?" she finally asked, seeing as that was on topic.

"Four," he answered. Caroline smiled, happy that they had an even number of people. "Six," Kol changed. He was frowning and looking off to the side. "Seven," he changed again. He looked like he was about to raise the number again, but he stopped and shook his head at Caroline. "I don't know. We're gonna be having a lot of people staying with us so the number is gonna vary..."

"But how many permanently?" she asked, not happy with his new statement.

"Four," he said again.

"Okay," Caroline sighed. She really hoped the people that had over wouldn't be people that were hung over after an all-night party. Because from the way he said it, there were going to be a lot of visitors into their house. Feeling she was getting overwhelmed again, she rubbed her forehead and looked around like she had something to do. "Well, I was just on my way to the store, so I better keep to it," she made up, starting to move past him.

"Yeah, I have a meeting to get to also. See you 'round," he said, waving his hand around pointlessly in the air like he didn't care but was "polite" enough to wave.

They parted separate ways and Caroline began walking down the sidewalk, praying that that year wouldn't drive her insane.

* * *

Elena stood up straight and pushed the hair out of her face. She took a deep breath and brushed her hands off on her pants. It had been half an hour since Caroline had left the house, and they'd cleared most of the stuff up off the floor. It had all been moved up stairs to the bedrooms. They didn't move the other girl's stuff. But they did touch it.

"Oh mi God," Bonnie mumbled. She was staring in awe at something she'd just picked up out of a box. "All of her underwear is the stuff you see in magazines for over three thousand dollars each," she said in bewilderment and a tad jealously.

"Yeah," Elena commented, putting her hands on her hips. "I saw that. This girl has some serious cash," she said, looking over their progress. Much better, you could actually tell that it was just a cluttered living room now.

"If she has money why is she living in a crappy duplex?" Bonnie asked the obvious question.

Elena shrugged. "Maybe she got the cheapest place she could get so she could spend money on other things," she guessed.

"Like what?" Bonnie asked, standing up herself. "The three hundred dollar hair spray?"

The girls chuckled and started aimlessly pacing around. "I'm honestly kind of intimidated," Elena confessed, making a face.

Bonnie bit the inside of her cheek, looking at the fancy furniture the other girl had already moved in. "Yeah, I know... She's probably the bitch from high school everyone hates," she hypothesized.

Elena chuckled and sat down on the couch they had moved to one of the walls. "Hopefully not."

Bonnie sat on the arm of the couch and lazily fell backwards onto the cushions. Elena frowned, getting a sudden idea. "Hey, if this girl is all she's making herself out to be, why haven't we seen any pictures of her?" she asked.

Bonnie thought about it for a second, and then really got confused. "Yeah, that is weird," she agreed, turning her head to look at the boxes, like there would be a picture just hanging out of one.

"Maybe she's not full of herself," she said hopefully.

"I found five mirrors in just one box," Elena said, giving Bonnie a look that said 'I don't think so.' "She's full of herself."

* * *

Caroline was walking down the side walk next to a road, not paying attention to cars that passed her. She had her mind wrapped around her schedule and what she wanted to achieve that year. She didn't even register that she was walking anymore. But she was soon brought back to reality when she heard a car slow down and pull up on the side of the road next to her. "Care for a lift?" someone called out of the car.

Caroline looked up at the old vintage car in front of her. She froze, looking over its details. But she really became speechless when she saw the one driving. Possibly the most handsome man she'd ever seen. Entrancing blue eyes, sexy stubble that didn't look bad like it usually did on men, gorgeous, strawberry-blonde wavy hair, strong jaw, and cheeks she would happily die to hold as she kissed the plush lips that completed his face.

Then she remembered he had asked a question. She was about to answer yes in a flash, but then realized what that situation looked like. She shook her head. "No thanks, I'm fine," she smiled at him.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked. "I'm kind of worried you'll be taken by a kidnapper in a van if you walk around this town alone for very long."

"You mean like you're trying to do right now?" she asked with a small smile on her lips. She was a tad frightened, to be honest, but she also felt like she was being a rebel, talking to strangers and all.

The man chuckled. "That's different. I'm not a kidnapper," he informed her.

Caroline nodded. "Yeah, because I'm going to believe that."

"I'm a man of my word," he added.

Caroline shook her head again. "Thanks, but no. I can't be too trusting in this town."

The man nodded with a smile. "Well said. Understandable. Well then, sorry to bother you," he apologized, placing his hands back on the wheel. "Maybe I'll see you around," he smiled charmingly at her.

Caroline smiled back. "Not likely," she said, wishing it weren't so. They were literally having a moment. This was a guy she didn't even know, and she was flirting with him.

His car started moving, and he kept her in his sight until he started pulling back onto the proper road.

Caroline watched after him before she turned around to follow her steps back home.

* * *

Kol relaxed on his bed, tossing a ball up into the air and catching it before it landed on his face. He was happy at peace in his room until he heard a sudden crashing noise. He caught the ball and held it still, listening intently. There was muffled yelling and thumping. It was fairly distant, and he gathered from the female voices that it was from the other half of their duplex. His room was right next to the wall, so he sat up and put his ear to it. The difference was incredible. He would hear every word.

"Those are my shoes!" one of them shouted.

"They're on my feet. And nowadays, ninety percent of possession is touching. So, they're mine right now," the other replied.

"Bonnie, give them back, your feet are too big for those."

"Ouch," the 'Bonnie' replied. "You know, just because someone has a disorder doesn't mean you have to make fun of them."

The other one laughed. "Disorder?" she giggled.

"Your brother's words, not mine."

"Jeremy makes fun of everyone, you're not gonna take it to heart, are you?"

"I take almost everything to heart."

"Well then, those shoes look bad on you."

"I said _almost_ everything."

There was chuckling and laughter coming from them both. "Oh I will kill you!"

Then screaming and giggling followed after that. Kol smirked. "Mm," he hummed, turning back to his room and standing up to leave. "Kinky."

He slowly strolled down the stairs and hummed as he cheerfully walked along, randomly patting the wall as he made his way to the living room. He took his police cap off of the wall and reached into the closet quickly to pull out his police jacket. Throwing the jacket on, he opened his door and walked exactly twelve paces to the door of the screaming girls. He pulled his cap on and smirked as he knocked on the door.

He heard the sound of their harsh words and giggling come to a halt and then footsteps approaching the door. He quickly became very serious and put his hands on his hips. The door slowly opened and in front of him stood a dark skinned girl with long, black hair that was slightly ruffled, beautiful eyes, and a body he could easily stare at all day long. "Umm...yes?" she asked, looking a tad scared.

"I've been getting a lot of calls about disturbance," he lied, getting rid of his British accent and staring crossly at the girl. "You do know what the consequences for that are, don't you?" he checked.

That's when she started freaking out. "I'm sorry! We had no idea we were being too loud. It won't happen again, I swear!" she started pleading.

Kol raised his eyebrows. She was cute. Most girls glared at him like they didn't have time for any of his shit. But she was truly concerned about what was going on. He decided to play it up even more.

"Miss, do you have a party going on?" he demanded, being overly stern.

She shook her head aggressively. "No, absolutely not... Why? Are they illegal around here?" she asked, becoming worried and confused.

"Yes, highly," he lied again. "I'm gonna have to ask to look around."

The girl stepped back, allowing him in. "Yeah, come in. There's nothing, really."

Kol stepped in and smirked. She obviously had never had a real officer in her home before; he was skipping the protocols and making stuff up as he went along. He pointed to the wall. "Is that pink?" he snapped, looking over his shoulder at her in a furry.

She looked at the wall and frowned. "Well...it's more of a really pale coral..."

Kol stared at her, not changing his angered expression. "Pink is against the law to have on your walls," he scolded, making that up as well. But she seemed to buy it.

"Oh. I'm sorry. We'll change it soon. I swear."

He acted like he believed her and started wondering the house again. It was the exact mirror of his side of the duplex. He was heading to the stairs, intending to snoop out their rooms. But he ran into a small brunette coming down the stairs.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. Her face went pale as she saw his cap and jacket. "Oh," she said again in a very different tone. "Hello..."

He looked at the shirt she was wearing. "Is that cotton?" he questioned.

She looked down and nodded quickly, answering his unusual question.

"Cotton isn't allowed in this town," he snapped, glaring down at her.

She frowned. "It's not?"

"You think I would make this up?" he shouted down at her.

"No!" she squealed out, looking down at the floor like a punished five year old.

Kol was about to yell at her for her shoes as well, but was stopped at the sound of the front door opening. All three of them looked towards the living room and could see Caroline taking her shoes off at the door. She looked up at the now cleared room and sighed. "Oh, that is so much better," she said to herself. When she looked up to the right, she saw the three people and started walking towards them. "Hey guys," she greeted. She walked right past them, patting Kol on the arm. "Kol."

The dark girl frowned. "What? You know him?" she demanded.

Caroline stopped at the foot of the stairs and nodded like it was obvious. "Yeah, he's the guy on the other side of the house," she said before walking upstairs.

Kol smiled proudly and looked down at the one that had last spoken. She glared up at him. "You're a real prick," she accused.

He held his hand out. "Kol," he introduced, still the smile on his face.

She took it ungratefully. "Bonnie."

Kol turned to the last girl right after Bonnie gave her name. "Elena," she said in response to his glance.

"Lovely," Kol said in meeting them, letting his accent back in. "Oh, and, by the way," he started, looking back to Bonnie. "I am, actually, a policeman."

Bonnie narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you?" she demanded, not believing him.

He sighed as he reached into his pocket. He pulled out his badge and showed it to her. "Kol Mikaelson, in the flesh."

She studied it, then seemed to ease up, believing his was no longer a liar.

"I can still wear this shirt though, right?" Elena chimed in, looking hopeful.

Kol rolled his eyes. "Yes. Wear all the cotton that pleases you," he said with a sassy spin on 'pleases.'

Elena nodded. "Okay." She pulled some of her hair behind her ear and turned to the stairs that Caroline had just disappeared up into. "Don't do that anymore," Elena sighed at him.

Kol shrugged. "Not making any promises…" he teased. Turning, he had time to see her purse her lips at him while taking a deep breath. She started walking up the stairs, deciding not to care about the new guest anymore. It was now Bonnie's job.

Bonnie had her hands on her hips as she watched Kol. He was turning and looking around the kitchen. "You guys are still unpacking?" he said like that was weird. He reached over and poked a box to see how full it was. The only sound they heard was his finger nail against the cardboard.

"Yeah," Bonnie answered. "Aren't you?"

Kol shook his head. "We finished a few days ago." He started making his way back into the living room. "But we do have a lot less stuff," he added, running his fingers over the top of the couch.

"'We' being?" she asked.

He turned around to look at her while they talked. He leaned himself against the couch. "My brothers and I," he answered.

Bonnie raised her eyebrows. "You have brothers?" she asked, wondering if there was a bunch of these sexy bastards.

Kol smiled. "Three, actually. And a sister."

"And they're all living in the other half of the duplex?" she checked.

"Everyone but the sister," he answered, giving her the exact answer she wanted.

Bonnie twisted her lips to the side, looking him over. She narrowed her eyes at him. "Are they as hot as you?"

Kol smirked. "Well," he started in a tone that said he was flattered. "They're not as dashing as _I_ am," he bragged, "but they're not too shabby."

Bonnie laughed. "Well then I think I'm in luck," she said, nodding.

Kol stared at her. "Are you saying that I'm incredibly good looking?" he asked, in a mockingly shocked tone.

"Careful, tiger," she said, giving him a fake serious face. "Don't get too full of yourself."

"Don't give me something to get excited about," he smirked back at her.

Bonnie smiled at him. This was going to be a great year; she could tell.

* * *

Elijah walked into the "house" and set down his keys on the table next to the door. Listening intently, he gathered that only Finn was in the house. "Excellent," he told himself, hoping he could get some peace and quiet before Kol got back from where ever he was off being unwanted.

Elijah walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. So far the only food in the ice box was blood, which was the only food any of them drank. Somehow looking at the blood made Elijah loose his appetite; the exact opposite reaction that healthy vampires had.

He closed the fridge and took a breath as he walked towards the stairs. "Finn?" he called in a low tone, knowing it would carry through the door if he got it low enough.

The sound of a door opening confirmed that Finn was, indeed, in the house. He appeared at the top of the stairs, looking down at Elijah. "Did you just arrive?" he asked, coming down.

Elijah turned and went back to the living room as he answered, "Yes. Have you any idea where our brothers are?"

Finn slowly followed his older brother, shaking his head at the answer to the question. "Yes. He went recently to get himself acquainted with the ladies next door," Finn said in a tone that said "typical Kol."

"And by 'next door' I assume you mean the other half of the duplex?" Elijah checked.

"Precisely," Finn confirmed, sitting down on the couch as Elijah stood by the window, looking out at the slightly empty neighborhood. Finn frowned at him. "You don't seem too pleased about living here," he commented.

"I'm not pleased," he said, raising his eyebrow but continuing to stare at the lawn. "Moving here was an immature move. We should be living in an actual house, not a college apartment," he said, becoming regretful to agreeing to the entire idea in the first place.

"We must live here," Finn told him, getting ready to have an argument. "Kol is a police man for this town, I have to teach at the college, Klaus is looking for a job, and there must be four of us in order to keep the duplex," he explained the already known information to Elijah. "It's only for a year. For you, it should feel like no time at all."

"So you say," Elijah replied, finally turning to look at his brother. "But that is a year of college parties, monthly rent, Kol bringing home a new visitor every week, and Klaus killing God knows how many people…"

Finn sighed, thinking of something else he could use to back his side of the banter up. But there was nothing positive he could give his brother. "Well, I could always dagger you until the school year is over," he offered.

Elijah chuckled. "Knowing my brothers, you would take the dagger from my chest in a century's time."

Finn nodded his head to the side. "Fair enough." He stood up from the couch and walked back towards the stairs, going to finish paper work he had been filling out. "But my offer stands whenever you change your mind."

Elijah didn't bother replying, he just went back to staring out the window, hoping that that year would fly.

* * *

Bonnie laughed loudly. She was sitting on the couch with Kol, getting to know one another. Bonnie had a beer in her hands, and Kol had a soda, seeing as he was on call for work for the next few hours. He was amusing her with tales of his past – which was incredibly long – and she, luckily, hadn't caught onto the fact that he'd done an awful lot for a 'twenty three' year old. She'd told him about her life, growing up in his home town, and about Elena and Caroline. He'd shared information about his brothers and sister, and they'd both gotten to know one another fairly well in just an hour.

Elena and Caroline were still upstairs doing whatever they felt like, ignoring the two on the lower level of the house.

"Hold on," Bonnie chuckled, adjusting herself so her feet under her weren't as uncomfortable. "You actually did that to him?"

"The man was an ass, he deserved it," Kol defended himself. The story of ruining some guy's wedding by making his allergies go haywire really wasn't a lie. Back in the 1800, people didn't have medicine for cat allergies.

Bonnie frowned at him with a giant smile on her face. "Sounds like you're the ass," she said, still chuckling at the story. Somehow, this guy getting even at some douche just sounded typical.

"I don't get even, love," he told her, taking a drink. "I get ahead," he finished, winking at her. She smiled at him and studied him again. He was beyond hot, she couldn't believe it. And just to top off the hotness, he was a cop, which just made him straight up sexy. He had his jacket thrown over the couch beside him, and his hat on his head. His perfectly toned muscles were incredibly obvious as they stood out against his tight, black t-shirt.

Bonnie took a drink and held the bottle in her fingertips as she swallowed. "So you're a cop. How did that happen?" she asked. Most guys in the 21st century were focused on being rappers, especially good looking ones.

Kol shrugged. "I don't know. Seemed like fun – bossing people around, shooting things, wearing the hat," he smiled.

Bonnie smiled. "Oh, so it had nothing to do with keeping the neighborhood safe?"

"Absolutely not," he frowned. She laughed and finished off the last of her drink, setting the bottle down on the floor and crossing her arms, getting a slight chill. Kol noticed and smirked. "Do you need me to hold you?" he asked, trying not to laugh at her.

She narrowed her eyes back at him sarcastically. "I'm not letting you touch me no matter what kind of official you are," she replied.

Kol nodded proudly. "Well said!" he congratulated her. "Most girls jump right up and run straight into the guy's arms," he explained. "And those girls end up getting kidnapped, being a slut, or losing their dignity."

"Yeah well, I'm a big girl. I know how to take care of myself," she informed him.

Kol laughed out loud. "Yeah right! I showed up at your door and you just allowed me right in," he reminded her.

"You were a police officer!" she defended herself.

Kol shook his head. "You didn't know that. I could have been a stripper for all you knew."

Bonnie smirked. "Now there's a sight…"

Kol narrowed his eyes at her playfully, taking another drink.

Caroline came walking into the room at that moment. She also had a beer in her hand and looked tired. She came over and sat down on the other side of Kol, relaxing and acting like he was her oldest friend. She closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm not interrupting am I?" she asked as she opened the bottle.

Kol shook his head. "Absolutely not," he said cheerfully.

Bonnie frowned at Caroline. "You look dead," she commented.

Caroline moaned. "I feel dead," she answered, staring ahead at a wall.

"Moving too much for you?" Kol asked.

Caroline only moaned in response. Bonnie smiled at her friend. "I don't think she's slept at all for the past week," Bonnie told Kol. "She's the one taking care of everything. She deals with the business."

"Well way to go, Care!" he cheered, moving his can to clink against hers. He had to do it all by himself because she was motionless. He chuckled and took the last drink of his soda before looking at his watch. "You ladies have anything going on tonight?" he asked, studying the clock.

Caroline groggily shrugged. Bonnie shook her head. "Just have to finish unpacking. Why?"

Kol looked at her. "I was thinking the eight of us could go out to eat, just to get to know one another," he suggested.

Caroline blinked slowly at the wall. "Why don't you two just go out instead of making up excuses like 'we want to get to know one another'?"

Bonnie and Kol both frowned at her. "This isn't an excuse. I want us to become comfortable around one another," he said truthfully.

"Why?" she asked expressionless.

"Because I don't want us to be that kind of duplex where everything is awkward when we have to give one another the mail that the idiot mailman put in the wrong box," he said in one breath.

Caroline raised her eyebrows and widened her eyes at the wall. "Well then!" she hissed, acting like he had just blown up at her.

Bonnie laughed at the two. "So?" Kol asked. "Tonight? Dinner?" he asked Caroline, seeing as she was kind of the boss of the household.

Caroline took a deep breath. "Sure," she agreed. Kol smiled and stood up, intending to go home because he had cop forms to fill out before the day was done. "But I don't even know the other roommate's name, so I'm not making any guarantees for her."

He took his jacket off the couch and waved his hand, excusing the matter. "Oh, it's cool. I know her, she'll be there," he said.

"Wait, you know her?" Bonnie asked. "Who?"

Kol made his way to the door and stopped to look back at them. "Her name's Rose. Word of advice… don't get on her nerves. Bitch'll tear you apart," he said with wide eyes. "Alright, I'm gone. Pick you guys up at seven?" He didn't wait for a response, just exited.

Caroline frowned and turned her head to Bonnie. "Rose?"

Bonnie shrugged. "Apparently," she answered.

Caroline turned and stared at the wall a little longer. She frowned and turned her head to Bonnie again. "Did you guys hit it off?"

Bonnie shrugged. "I hope so," she answered.

"Get any info on the brothers?" she asked, hoping for good news.

Bonnie sighed, thinking. "They're hot?" she tried, hoping Caroline hadn't already guessed that.

Caroline went back to staring at the wall, bringing the bottle up to take a drink. "Thank God."


	2. Chapter 2

Elena pouted as she stood in the kitchen with her hands on her hips. "I really don't want to go anywhere tonight, Caroline," she pouted.

"Come on, Elena," Caroline replied, getting pouty herself. "Just tonight, then you don't have to do anything I ask you for the rest of the year," she promised.

"Yeah, I've heard that one before," Elena grumbled, leaning against the counter and crossing her arms.

Caroline sighed, calming herself down. "They're our neighbors. Practically our roommates. We have to get to know them, or this entire year is going to be boring, awkward, and creepy," Caroline explained.

Elena frowned in irritation and stared at the floor. "Can't you and Bonnie and the new girl go? I could stay home and finish unpacking," she offered.

Caroline shook her head. "No. Absolutely not. You have to go." Elena growled, but before she could say anything, Caroline continued. "You met the first one this morning! And the other three are his brothers, so they're all going to be really hot," she assumed.

"You don't know that," Elena told her, narrowing her eyes at the blonde. "And it doesn't matter, anyway... I'm with Damon," she reminded.

Caroline watched her for a moment with that 'bitch, please' look. "Since when does our boyfriend change our interest in guys?"

Elena scoffed. "I'm with Damon, so I'm not going to be looking at other guys."

"Yes you will." Caroline stared at her, waiting for her to crack.

Elena took a deep breath. "Okay, yes, I might look at other guys; but what you're doing right now is almost like a blind date."

Caroline laughed. "Yeah, I'm setting you up with four guys while Bonnie, Rose, and I watch."

"It's not out of your range!" Elena defended. "And who's Rose?"

"The roommate, who – may I add – is going tonight as well," Caroline smeared in her face.

Elena bit her lips, thinking. She'd have to meet them sooner or later…might as well get it over with. And the other three girls were going, so she would just look like a chicken if she was the only one not going. It was just a simple dinner, just getting to know who they were sharing a house with. Plain as that.

Elena stood up and sighed. "Fine," she gave in, and then realized she needed some sort of rule. "But I want to be home before ten, got it?"

Elijah fixed his tie in the mirror beside the front door. Finn stood by the couch, waiting for Klaus to get downstairs. Kol was in the kitchen, looking for his wallet. "I warn you now, Kol," Elijah began, putting his hands in his pockets and turning around to face the living room, "if you proceed to make these sorts of plans on a whim, we are going to have a very serious problem," he promised.

Kol stuck his head to the side to look down the hallway at his brother. "You need to learn to have fun every now and again," he informed his brother, walking down the hallway.

"Or you could learn to mellow down," Finn suggested.

Kol frowned at both his brothers. "Well good thing Nik is here. If not, then this entire year would be boring and pathetic."

"That's what you think," Klaus commented, entering the living room while grabbing his jacket off of the couch. "I'm not looking forward to your parties, whatsoever," he said to his younger brother.

Kol opened his mouth in an offended way at his brother. "I'm all alone this year?" he said in mock surprise. He'd seen it coming. He shook his head. "Well then, more ladies for me," he smirked at all of his brothers.

"The only problem with that sentence," Finn started, opening the door to reveal the black outdoors, "is that only Klaus is jealous."

The men started filing out of the house. "Not even Klaus," Klaus vouched for himself.

Kol shut the door behind them and tossed the keys to Klaus. "You guys take the black car, and I'll drive the ladies in the red one," he planned out.

No one objected. The three eldest brothers climbed into the car and left before Kol even approached the other door. He knocked on the door before holding his hands behind his back, waiting patiently. Normally he liked to get going when he was waiting to go out somewhere, but tonight, he wanted the girls to be fashionably late.

He stood outside for maybe thirty seconds before the door opened and the third girl…Anna…Elizabeth…the girl he didn't know very well stood there with a tired expression on her face. He smiled at her just to try to make her a little livelier. The last thing he needed was to introduce his brothers to a handful of dead looking, lifeless girls. Etana held open the door for him and he stepped right in. "You lovely women ready?" he asked, looking around at the empty living room.

Alex closed the door and waited against the arm of the couch. She didn't look like she'd even tried to look attractive. She wore what she'd been wearing previously and her brown hair lay perfectly straight around her shoulders. "They're almost ready," she informed him. "Caroline's finishing curling her eyelashes," she rolled her eyes.

Kol turned towards the kitchen at the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs. Bonnie came around the corner, looking sexier than all-get-out. She'd curled her hair and was wearing a low V-neck shirt and skinny jeans with killer boots that made her a good five inches taller. She smiled when she saw him. "Hey, Kol," she greeted, coming up next to him.

"Wait!" someone yelled from upstairs. "Kol's here already?" Caroline's voice carried down through the house.

"Yes," Annita replied, looking annoyed. "So hurry up. We're meeting our neighbors, not the queen."

Caroline's feet hurried down the stairs and she marched into the living room, her cheeks flushed from panicking about being 'late.' "Alright, I'm ready," she announced. She, like Bonnie, had dressed up. But compared to Bonnie's outfit, Caroline's was much more casual, yet still flashy.

"Excellent," Kol beamed, opening the door once more. He held the door open for the ladies as they walked out. Bonnie, shaking her ass, Caroline, practically jumping in excitement, and Alice, looking gloomy and bored to tears. When they were all outside, Kol made sure to shut the door and ask them for the key in order to lock it. "Shotgun, anyone?" he offered, returning the keys to Caroline.

No one spoke up immediately, but Bonnie had this look on her face that seemed a little _too_ careless. After about five seconds of silence, Bonnie shrugged. "I guess I will," she offered.

Amelia rolled her eyes and headed for the door to the backseat of the red car in the driveway. As Caroline got in the back as well, she noted how clean it was. Good, she thought, that means he's not a slob.

When everyone was in the car, Kol started pulling out of the drive way and heading down the road, clearly knowing where he was going. "Who are we meeting?" Emily questioned.

"My brothers," Kol smiled at her in the rearview mirror.

"Oh, joy," she mumbled sarcastically as she turned back to her window.

Caroline rolled her eyes at her friend. "Can you please try not to be such a drag when we actually meet them, Elena?"

"Elena!" Kol hissed at himself, not believing he hadn't been able to remember that. Bonnie frowned at him. He gave her a sideways look, like he was questioning _her_. She chuckled and went back to staring out the windshield.

Apparently Bonnie had been the only one to hear him, because Caroline and Elena were still bickering in the backseat. "I don't have to act all bubbly just because you want to make a good impression," Elena retorted.

"You know that that isn't –" Caroline cut herself off. She took a deep, audible sigh. "Okay, no, I'm not fighting with you right now," she told herself.

Elena followed her example with her own sigh. Both girls went to looking out their window. Kol looked at Bonnie silently. They shared awkward third-wheel glances.

Everything was quiet for about two whole minutes before Kol couldn't take it. "So: my brothers. I think you'll like them. There're three of them," he informed them in an enthusiastic voice. "I'm hoping that if I'm incredibly lucky, we could all hook up on a quadruple date."

"Not likely," Elena killed his hopes, while Bonnie started getting excited, along with Caroline.

Kol frowned at Elena in the rear view mirror. "And why not?"

Caroline rolled her eyes. "She's already got a boyfriend," she announced in a mock excited voice.

Kol started chuckling – well more like giggling. Elena frowned at him. "What is your problem?"

He stopped laughing long enough to talk. "I really think that's going to change," he chuckled.

"I don't know," Bonnie denied. "They're pretty tied together. Took him four years and a stake to get her," she told him.

"Bonnie," Caroline growled in warning.

But Kol had caught it. "Stake?" he repeated. "Like meat or wood?" he checked.

"Meat," Elena answered right away. "Romantic dinner is all," she lied quickly.

Kol didn't believe them. He waited for one of them to become an awkward mess, but surprisingly, they all went to a casual silence. He decided to try them. With his hands on the wheel, he used his index fingernail to grind a small cut into his thumb. "Oh, I cut myself," he announced, holding his thumb up for them all to examine. A single drop of blood was slowly leaking out.

Bonnie looked at the blood like it was gross, Elena looked worried, and Caroline looked totally transfixed on it. When Kol came to a stop at a red lightly, he looked back at her, and saw that her eyes were beginning to turn red. He smirked at his new discovered information. He reached his hand back and held his finger out to her. "Hungry?" he offered.

"What are you doing?" Bonnie demanded.

"Caroline!" Elena warned, but it was too late. Caroline had already attached her mouth to his finger and licked the blood off. But just as soon as the blood had entered her mouth, she had pushed his hand away while making a disgusted face.

Kol laughed out loud as he brought his hand back up to the front seat and started moving the car again when the light turned green. "You've never had vampire blood before, have you?" he asked before bringing his finger to his own mouth to stop the slow bleeding.

Kol pulled on his vampire face and turned to look at Bonnie. "You're a vampire," she concluded, not happy. She'd hoped they would end up dating, but she honestly didn't like dating blood thirsty creeps. She had problems even being friends with them.

"Not just a vampire, dear," he said, returning to his human face. "I'm _the_ vampire," he corrected.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Caroline questioned.

"Okay, you were turned by a vampire, who was turned by a different vampire, who was turned by _another_ vampire…" he started to explain.

"Yeah, I got that part, thanks," she snapped.

"Who do you think turned them all in the first place?" Kol went on, ignoring her sassy input.

Elena narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you saying you're the first vampire?"

"You're full of shit," Bonnie accused, crossing her arms. "There is no way _you_ started the vampire race and are still alive."

"Heard of the Originals?" he questioned, looking for any kind of bell to ring in their heads.

"Yeah," Elena admitted. "Stefan mentioned them once or twice."

Kol nodded with a smile, proud to be talked about. "That's my brothers and me. Plus the sister, and the dead parents…"

"Oh mi God," Caroline mumbled in the back. "He's not lying," she told the girls. "The Original family: Elijah, Finn, Klaus, Kol, and Rebekah," she listed off, never hearing the names from Kol.

Kol smiled even brighter, happy that she was on the right page. "Yes, ma'am. Elijah, the calm, proper bastard. Finn, the too-old-for-any-kind-of-shit, fatherly one. Klaus, the full of himself, serial killer. Me, the dashing, ever so hansom, lovable monkey. And Rebekah, the sassy, bitchy, 'cry baby at times' _female_," he informed them as he turned the corner on a street.

Everyone was silent for a moment, ignoring Kol's enthusiastically good mood. "I'm suddenly not so sure about this dinner," Caroline admitted, feeling her stomach start to jump.

Kol waved off her worries. "Don't worry about it. We're not going to eat you. Why do you think we're living in a _duplex_?" he questioned them, making the point that they were slightly friendly. "Just play it cool and I promise it'll be awesome," he reassured.

He was kind of right. He would have been completely right if the girls hadn't acted so totally awkward. When they entered the restaurant, all of the girls immediately started looking around everywhere for the men, but they didn't see them until Kol led the way to the table. Three men sat at a table in a booth, talking and chatting with one another and the additional short-haired brunette girl sitting with them.

"Brothers," Kol said as he stopped at the end of the table. "Rose," he added with a smile at her. Caroline, Bonnie, and Elena all gathered around Kol timidly. Caroline was impressed with them, all the girls were; but what really caught Caroline's attention was the man with the lightest hair. He was the man from that morning. The one that offered her a ride. She expected she would have felt a little surer about what she was doing knowing that he was there, but in truth, she just felt more embarrassed and self-conscious. Everyone at the table stood up, which surprised the girls. They _were_ all formal like. As the man from that morning stood up, he locked eyes with Caroline and smirked a knowing smile at her. Caroline could only reply by staring at him.

"Everyone, meet who you're living with," Kol said with a chuckle as he stood back, letting everyone see the three girls he had been protecting.

All of them stared at one another. Elijah was the first to speak. When he'd glanced at Elena, he'd thought immediately that it was Katherine, but seeing how she nervously glanced at everyone and bit the inside of her cheek, he quickly gathered that she was yet another doppelganger. He held his hand out to her. "Elijah Mikaelson," he addressed himself.

Elena hesitantly took his hand, pulling some of her hair behind her ear as she shook it. "Elena Gilbert," she replied.

Elijah nodded at her in acknowledgement before taking his hand back. He went to Bonnie next. She took it and smiled with a nod. "Bonnie," she told him. Then finally to Caroline, who shook his hand with enthusiasm.

When Elijah finally stepped back after having learned their names, Finn moved to do the entire song and dance all over again. Kol, however, cut him off. "Okay!" he exclaimed, pushing Finn's hand back down, which got him a scowl in return. "We know the ladies' names now, let's just skip to you four," he said, pointing at his brothers and Rose.

"Absolutely not," Klaus denied, holding his hand out to Caroline. "My name is Klaus," he greeted in his husky voice.

Caroline smiled and shook his hand much more gently than she had Elijah's. "Caroline," she repeated herself from before. Their hands stayed together as they stared at one another. Klaus had a smirk of admiration on his face and Caroline had a smile of bashfulness.

Elijah and Finn ignored the two, knowing that it was typical that their brother did this. Rose rolled her eyes, Kol gave the two a look that said _Are you serious? Already?_ And Bonnie and Elena both smirked at each other in that knowing way.

Everyone gave Klaus and Caroline their moment for about five seconds before Kol got tired of the googly-eyes. "Alright!" he said, pulling everyone to attention. "Everyone, I'm Kol. This is Finn. Rose. Great, we all know one another; can we stop with the flirting?" he asked Klaus while he pinched the bridge of his nose and moved to sit down in the booth.

Caroline blushed, embarrassed that everyone had seen. "Because you've got room to talk," Elena mumbled under her breath, but everyone heard it.

Kol frowned at her like he was offended. He moved all the way to the wall of the booth and leaned back. "At least I'm discreet about it!" he defended.

"Oh, is that what they're calling it?" Finn asked as he moved into the other side of the table. "'Discreet.'"

Elijah smiled as he held his hand out, offering the seat next to Finn to one of the ladies. Rose moved in and made sure to add in her two cents. "I thought that was just you begging to be banged," she said back to Kol as she settled at Finn's side.

Elena moved in next to Kol as he started making noises that were meant to be arguments. "You're all making me look bad," he informed them, as if they weren't aware.

"No," Klaus corrected. "You did that to yourself." He sat down next to Bonnie, who had seated himself beside Elena. Caroline sat down next to Elijah, in the last seat, which just placed her across from Klaus, making her look _way_ too desperate.

"Okay," Kol said, changing the conversation. "Have you ladies been here before?" he asked the two next to him, glancing at Caroline.

"Um, no, _I_ haven't," Bonnie replied, looking around to double check that nothing looked familiar. Elena shook her head in agreement. Caroline didn't respond, assuming that the girls had spoken for all of them. She was staring at her hands in her lap, feeling Klaus' eyes watching her.

"Really? I come here all the time," Kol informed them.

"Only because of the dance floor," Rose accused. "Never have you commented on the food."

Kol frowned, playing along with her. "They have food here?"

Before anyone had time to mockingly laugh at him, Elijah took the menus from the pile on the side of the table and distributed them to everyone. "So," Elena started, opening her menu and pretending to look over what there was. "I know it's none of my business, but if you guys are the Originals, why are you living in a duplex?" she asked straight out. She was surprised at herself. For some reason, she was highly confident, something that she only was when she was angry.

Luckily, none of them seemed to have a problem with the question. "I'm a police officer for the town," Kol reminded. "This town is actually known for crimes, so I thought it would be fun," he admitted.

"I'm a teacher at the university," Finn informed her, propping his arm up on the back of the seat behind Rose's head. When Elena raised her eyebrows in surprise at his statement, he went on explaining. "I'm a major in history," he answered.

Caroline laughed, along with Rose. "Figures," Rose mumbled, folding her menu and placing it on the table in front of her. "You were there for all of it," she chuckled, turning and giving him a teasing smile. He shook his head at her, trying not to smile at the fact that, yes, he was there for all of it. It made him proud of himself.

"What about you?" Bonnie asked Klaus, figuring that if they didn't have a problem with Elena asking, she would be no different.

However, she had asked the wrong brother. Klaus took a deep breath. "I have to get a job," he answered sourly without making eye contact.

Caroline frowned at him. "You're an Original. Do you really _have _to do anything?" she asked.

He did make eye contact with her, though. "Yes," he told her sternly. "I do."

"We may be Originals," Elijah started filling in the blanks, "but witchcraft works strongly against us."

Bonnie became incredibly interested at that statement, seeing as she was a witch. "He was cursed to get a job?" she said what she was gathering.

Kol inhaled a hiss, thinking out how he could explain it. "Three years ago we were cursed to live human lives for four years. We've survived this long, but –"

"But some of us are getting a bit tired of it," Elijah finished.

Caroline nodded. All of her questions had been put to rest. Well, most of them, anyway. She'd been incredibly confused as to why they were living in a duplex, but their excuse seemed to be acceptable.

Rose folded her hands in her lap and watched everyone that spoke. Elena remembered she was there and frowned. "You're not the sister, are you?" she checked. She didn't think so, but she thought she would check, just in case.

Rose looked at her and had to think about the question. Then she exhaled a laugh and shook her head. "Absolutely not," she said. "No, I'm nothing like Rebekah."

That was translated incorrectly in the girls' minds. They took being 'nothing like' the Original sister to mean 'not a vampire.'

"No," Kol agreed with Rose. "Rose is more of the cool, mellow type," he said, narrowing his eyes at her as he tried to describe her personality. "Bekah is…well…." He chuckled to finish the sentence.

It was silent for a moment, but the moment was very short. Elijah placed his menu on the place in front of him and leaned his elbows on either side of the booklet. "Now, let me see if I have gathered this correctly," he began, looking back and forth between the three girls. He took a moment to reassure himself of his next words. "You," he began, looking straight at Bonnie, "are a witch," he informed her.

Bonnie raised her eyebrows, no in an impressed way, but almost like she was trying him. She never liked when people identified her as a witch, and especially not by an Original. Something about these guys made her feel like they were just _letting off_ this vibe of 'We're all that matter and you can kiss our shoes for all we care.'

But Elijah didn't look that deeply into Bonnie's look, even though he caught her gist. He went on to Caroline. "You are a vampire," he told her, with a bit of a question in his voice, allowing her to correct if he was wrong. But she didn't, so he moved right along to Elena. "And you," he dragged out, spending more time on her. "You're neither warlock nor demon."

Elena held his eye contact, becoming more intimidated by the second. She knew she was a doppelganger, but she hoped he wouldn't know that. She didn't like the thought of him knowing her this fast. All eyes were on either Elijah or her, and she felt tiny under all of them.

"You're the last of the Petrova doppelgangers," he said in a low tone, crushing her hopes of remaining a secret. "Following Katerina Petrova," he added, showing just how much he knew about the subject.

Elena looked down to the list of available food in her lap. She bit her bottom lip and let her hair fall into her face. She hadn't felt this exposed since Damon had tried to kiss her for the first time.

Caroline sensed Elena's mood, knowing her best friend so well, and she quickly, despise her intimidation of the brothers, made up a new topic. "Okay, you know us," she said to Elijah, "so tell us about you."

Elijah leaned back into the back of the seat and looked sideways at her, admiring her straightforwardness. "I'm the eldest. I make negotiations with nearly everyone that crosses my path. I do not tolerate immature people, such as my brother, well, and I appreciate people that know that they're doing," he said, giving her random information. Caroline nodded, showing she understood everything he said. "And yourself?" he asked.

"Ahhhmmm…" she made noise. She hadn't expected him to care about her, let alone question her. She inclined her head to the side, thinking. "I'm an only child…I…was…turned at eighteen…" she stared at everyone as she tried to come up with bits of herself. "I'm a bit of a control freak…yet I don't like when people let others control their lives. And…I'm single," she finished.

Rose and Kol started giggling and giving one another knowing glances. The three girls looked to the snickering ones. "I'm sorry," Finn apologized. "You'll have to forgive them. They're a tad…immature?" he said while giving Kol a look that said 'straighten up.'

Kol smiled as he looked at Caroline. "He's right. I'm terribly sorry," he said to her, but his eyes still laughed. He and Rose finally stopped chuckling and gathered their composures.

Bonnie raised her eyebrows at them, a little offended for Caroline. "What's so funny?" she questioned them.

Rose stared at her lap. She licked her top lip before biting it to hide a smile. Kol watched her, and started beaming again along with her. "She's single," he repeated from earlier. Immediately, they both turned red as they held back laughs.

"Yes," Caroline said, getting upset. "I am. I thought that was an interesting piece of information that you all may want to know," she said while making sure her eyes were locked on Kol so they didn't float over to someone else…say, Klaus. "Because now you know that I'm an independent woman taking charge of all of the paper work of our trio, and I don't want a snobby man on my arm getting into my business." Kol's smile had now started to fade as he listened to her. "And then there's just the obvious fact that if we're going to be anything close to friends, we have to know about one another. I'm single, Elena's not, Bonnie is. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm almost positive that Rose is in a relationship with one of you, and I would bet my life that you're without a 'darling', too," she said straight to Kol's face.

He looked stern now. Almost angry. As he watched her closely, she began to feel like she'd said too much. She got the glimpse of her embarrassment coming on, but it was quickly over looked as she saw Elijah smugly smile to himself and raise his eyebrows at his brother. "Well, brother?" he asked, resting one hand on the table and picking at his nails. "Anything to say?"

Kol looked to Elijah for a moment, then back to Caroline's now closed up face. She was afraid he was going to eat her at first. But then his face started to soften. He even started to smile a tiny bit. He pointed to Caroline. "You're good," he complimented. His finger moved to Rose. "Now try to figure out who she's with," he said, testing her.

Caroline hesitated, looking to Bonnie and Elena. Bonnie looked completely happy, watching everything play out. Elena, however, looked like she was itching to get out of the booth. While silently asking for help from her friends, her eyes couldn't help but look at Klaus for just a fragment of a second. But then she wished she hadn't. She'd wanted him to be admiring her, but he was, instead, staring at Bonnie at his side.

Caroline decided to ignore his gaze for the time being, but she did keep it in the back of her mind as she leaned over the table to study Rose. Rose had a smirk on her face and she watched Caroline, dying to see what she decided on.

Caroline studied her posture. She had her legs crossed, her hands folded on top of them (mockingly proper), she slightly turned towards Elijah – but that may have just been because she was looking at Caroline, Finn's arm was around her shoulders, but she was sitting closer to Elijah. Kol had been laughing with her, so they weren't dating. If they were together, things like that would have only come as a small chuckle, but if they were best friends, then everything immediately becomes hysterical. And Klaus was showing her no attention at all (seeing as he was taking an interest to Bonnie), so he was out of the question. So that left the two sitting next to her. Finn had the more adoring look to him, and Elijah just looked like he was excited to hear her conclusion. Then again…they all could just be playing her. Trick question… That had to be it.

Caroline bit her lips together. "She's not dating anyone," she said quietly, but it didn't matter because they were all vampires – perfect hearing.

Elijah's face turned into a proud smile. Rose chuckled and turned herself so she was facing center again. "Well done," Finn said while looking at Kol. "Looks like there's a new matchmaker," he told him.

Kol shook his head. "Oh, nu-uh," he said while lifting his finger to motion to him and Caroline. "I'm still the matchmaker; she's got to prove herself before she takes that title from me."

"Matchmaker?" Elena repeated in a question.

Rose leaned in to answer her, trying to talk over Kol and Finn arguing. "Kol has the ability to read people's love lives without them even mentioning it."

Caroline, who had been listening to Rose, frowned and shook her head. "No, I can't do that."

Bonnie chuckled and Elena gave Caroline a 'you're so full of it' look. Bonnie folded her arms on the table. "You can read people's romantic lives like it's on a bulletin above their heads," she said.

"I've been doing that for years!" Kol was telling Finn. "There's no way she's as good as me."

"You don't know that," Klaus stepped in, talking over the non-vampire's heads.

"Yes I do," Kol said matter-of-factly. "I can even tell people their _previous_ romantic situations."

"Remember when I started dating Jeremy?" Bonnie questioned Caroline. "You knew immediately. And I hadn't even told you I was interested in him."

"That was different," Caroline corrected. "You had this look to you that gave it away."

"Elena," Bonnie said, turning her head. "Did you see a look?"

"I didn't see a look."

"There was no look," Bonnie concluded, turning back to Caroline with a 'tough luck' look on her face.

"Now hold on," Rose said, looking around Elijah to Caroline. "There is more to me. Can you figure it out?" she questioned.

Caroline bit the corners of her lips and watched Rose timidly. She instantly had a theory, but she feared that if she said it out loud, Rose would be offended or angry or something. So she kept quiet and shook her head. "No idea."

"See?!" Kol exclaimed, pointing at Caroline. "She didn't know. I win."

"At the Matchmaker, possibly," Elijah said. "But in other skills that, in the end, are useful, I believe she has the winning title, no doubt." Caroline smiled to herself at that. If he was already saying she was impressive, then maybe that year wouldn't be that bad. She looked up to see Elijah looking at her with a small, small smile on his face. No, that year wouldn't be that bad at all. It was no longer awkward, and Caroline felt safe in her skin, as did Elena and Bonnie. Now all they had to do is make sure the Originals liked them so that they wouldn't be in danger of…well…dying because they pissed off one of the oldest beings on earth. Yeah, that would be a trick for all of them…

* * *

Abrupt ending, I know. But I had to cut my 12,000 word chapter in half, so the next chapter will be up as soon as I proof read it.

Please review! It makes my day!


	3. Chapter 3

"If you can do what you're claiming," Bonnie said, getting in Kol's face about the matchmaker thing, "then tell me about my romantic life," she tried him. She didn't like how proud of himself he was, and she wanted to rub it in his face that he _wasn't_ all that awesome.

He leaned on the table and smirked at her. Everyone was now in their own conversations. Elijah had started muttering in a very tiny voice to Rose, with Finn trying to eavesdrop. Elena was watching Bonnie and Kol was they talked around her. And Klaus leaned a little over the table to talk to Caroline quietly. "I told you I wasn't a stalker this morning," he brought up their previous encounter.

"I still don't know that," she said back in a small, trying voice.

"I'm an Original; that must give you some idea of how I live."

Caroline chuckled. "Actually, that just means you could be a creepy grandpa inside."

Klaus started to smile. "I resent that," he said in a friendly way.

"You should. But if you're not a creepy old guy, what are you?" she asked, interested in what a zillion year old being would act like.

Klaus hesitated to answer. He couldn't tell her exactly who he was yet, that would just push her completely away and build a brick wall between them. So, he decided to tell her the truth that would never be confirmed. "I'm just like you, except I've managed to control myself one hundred percent and nothing really comes as a surprise to me anymore."

"Really?" Caroline smiled, getting ideas. "Then I guess I have a new mission."

"Trying to surprise me?" he clarified, appealed that she was set out to prove him wrong.

"I bet I can do it," she said, getting excited.

"And what exactly are you willing to bet?" he probed her.

Meanwhile, everyone else was still carrying on with their conversation.

"I don't like you," Bonnie hissed at Kol as he smirked in pride at her. He had just demonstrated his skill on her, uncovering that she'd dated two guys in the past three years. He informed her of her type, as well (something she hadn't pieced together herself, but found he was right when he described the perfect guy to her).

"No, I'm not finished," he informed her, holding up a finger like a sassy woman. "There's one more thing. I know that the first guy you dated was Elena's brother."

Elena frowned in disbelief at him. "How could you possibly know that?"

"I bet he's been stalking us," Bonnie fathomed.

Kol leaned back in his seat and pulled his hands up behind his head. "I'm just that good, darling," he said with a grin on his face.

"We really do need to get this whole thing sorted out," Finn told Elijah and Rose in their own private conversation.

"Agreed," Rose said with eagerness, getting upset with the conversation. She huffed and looked forward, deciding not to look directly at Elijah or Finn. "I hate when you both just jump at me like this."

Elijah sighed in frustration. "If you simply settled this entire thing, one of us wouldn't be here to jump at you."

"Well I don't want to settle it. I like it," she smirked.

"And if you continue to admit things like that," Finn started to warn her, "Elijah will leave you faster than you can imagine."

"That is true," Elijah agreed. "I don't like fighting with family because someone finds it amusing."

"But that's the catch, isn't it?" Rose asked, looking at Elijah. "You won't leave."

"Again," Finn said, rolling his eyes. "He'll leave you if you continue to tell him what he can and cannot do. Because now he feels he needs to prove you wrong."

Klaus held his hand over the table to Caroline, starting to end their own dispute. "So it's now a deal," he declared, smirking. "You surprise me by the end of the year–"

"School year!" Caroline reminded, bringing her hand up to take his in the shake.

"By the end of the _school_ year," he changed, "and I'll take you wherever you want on this earth. But if you don't win, then you tell me your deepest secret," he negotiated.

"My deepest secret? Really?" she enquired without taking her hand from his.

"I've come to learn that secrets can be very useful," he said simply, narrowing his eyes and nodding.

Caroline chuckled and nodded her head to the side to say _alright then_. She shook his hand firmly and said, "Deal."

Klaus smirked and pulled his hand back, watching her with a certain…glint to his eyes.

Caroline smiled at him for a few seconds, studying his blue eyes. She looked up, however, when she saw a guy approaching the table. She saw the notepad in his hand and remembered that she was in a restaurant. "Oh, food, right," she said, pulling herself back to her menu in her lap.

Rose saw the guy too and brought Elijah and Finn's attention to it.

The guy got to the table and greeted them. "Hello. My name is Cooper, and I'll be your waiter for the evening."

"About time," Klaus mumbled to himself and looked down at his menu. He had his choice of food all ready and gave his order to Cooper. Elijah followed, and then Elena. Finn followed, ordering the same thing Elena chose, and Caroline thought what Elijah got sounded good. Rose requested two plates of advertisers. Elena realized Bonnie and Kol were the last two, but they hadn't even noticed Cooper. They were still arguing over how amazing Kol was. Elena elbowed Bonnie, getting her to look up at Cooper.

It was like you could almost see the electric currents pass between Cooper and Bonnie. Bonnie became speechless as she studied the hottie at their table. Kol giggled evilly to himself and ordered his meal. Bonnie smiled at Cooper as he looked at her, waiting for her voice to ring. "I'll have the same," she said in the most feminine voice she could come up with, making sure her s's were soft and long, and her m came out almost inaudibly.

"Great. I'll be back in just a short while," Cooper reassured them, looking mainly at Bonnie.

He turned to leave, but Klaus' arm lashed out and grabbed his, stopping him in his tracks. "How about your oldest champagne, mate?" he added to the order in a low voice, not happy that the guy had left out drinks because a girl had tickled his fancy.

Cooper nodded at Klaus, and walked away quickly. As he got out of earshot, everyone went back to doing their own thing. Well, they would have, but Kol caught everyone's attention.

He crossed his arms on the table and leaned around Elena to Bonnie. "Oh, mi God. Wasn't he _handsome_?" he hissed in a screaming whisper.

"Shut up!" she snapped back at him.

"Did I miss something?" Finn asked, frowning at the two.

"Yes," Elena replied almost immediately. "You missed an entire conversation."

Kol turned to everyone else and started explaining. "I described Bonnie's dream guy to her, and that was him," he said, summing it up.

"You totally saw him earlier and just guessed that I would like him," Bonnie accused.

Kol rolled his eyes. "Yes, and I also guessed at your entire romantic life for the past three years," he said sarcastically.

"Do you two need a minute alone?" Caroline asked, telling them that they were being ridiculous.

"No," Bonnie said strongly. She sat up straight and collected her posture. "I'm done talking to him."

Kol frowned at her like _Are you kidding me?_ "She just hates being shown wrong, doesn't she?" he asked Caroline and Elena.

"Yeah."

"Kinda."

"So, Finn!" Bonnie said, changing the topic off of herself and onto someone else. "What's your story?" she asked, looking completely interested.

"I'm not sure what else there is to share," he said respectfully. "I've lived a rather long and monotonous life."

"Oh, come on," Bonnie dragged. "There's got to be something fun you can tell us girls."

"Yeah, Finn," Rose agreed, turning and smirking at him. "Tell us girls a story."

Finn thought for a moment, and then cleared his throat. "How about the tale of sailing with Christopher Columbus?" he asked, seeing if that would get their attention.

"Oh, good God," Rose mumbled to herself. "I need a drink."

Bonnie and Elena actually seemed to be interested of how Finn was around when that Columbus dude was sailing to America. Caroline, however, hated history, so she decided that looking around the restaurant would be much more entertaining.

Klaus watched Caroline, noting all the little things she did. Like how she licked her lips every so often and how she always turned her head to where she was looking. But he especially liked how she would show her expressions through her eyes. You could tell whether she was confused, annoyed, having fun, shocked, or just simply pondering by the way she looked at everything.

Elijah looked down at Rose's hand. He didn't touch her, just studied her soft skin, debating whether to hold it or not. A long time ago, he wouldn't have hesitated to. He wouldn't even have had to think about wrapping his arms around her… But now that Finn was involved, it was out of the question. Elijah looked back up, tuning himself into the story of the voyage, leaving Rose's hand to rest at her side peacefully.

Luckily, they only got half way across the ocean before Cooper returned with the champagne and glasses. Klaus dismissed him, much to Bonnie's disappointment. He stood up out of the booth and opened the bottle with his teeth (which Caroline found incredibly hot) and poured everyone a glass.

"How about a toast?" Kol offered, holding his glass up and smiling. A few people frowned at him (mainly the girls), but all did as he had and held their drinks up. "To getting to know one another," he announced. Klaus took a seat and inclined his head forward. He went to take a sip, but Kol continued, so he stopped and raised his eyebrows at his brother. "And to living like humans," he smiled. "Elijah, add your two cents."

Elijah thought for a moment, but because he'd done this so many times, the moment was only like two seconds. "May this year come and pass as quickly as it arrived."

"And to parties," Kol added onto his. He then looked at Rose, telling her it was her turn.

Rose inhaled as she raised her eyebrows quickly and then dropped them as she exhaled in not wanting to say anything. "Um. To complications," she said, and only Elijah and Finn understood.

"To _solving_ complications," Kol corrected cheerfully. He then looked to Elena – her turn.

Elena hesitated for a long time, not knowing what to say. "To…friendship," she chuckled, trying to make it look like it was silly and she didn't really want to do it because Kol was stupid.

Kol's smile dropped and he looked at Elena with a serious face. "Hey, I already said that," he accused her like she'd taken his glory.

Finn lifted his glass. "Always treating the ladies with some respect," he said to Kol in a stern voice.

"To being single," Bonnie smirked.

Kol leaned around Elena. "What!?" he hissed at her like that was the most idiotic thing he'd ever heard.

Caroline continued, wanting to speak before she lost confidence or someone else talked first. "Keeping my head from exploding through any frustration."

"To dating everyone that comes in our path!" Kol said louder than the table's volume limit. He was trying to make the point that he didn't want anyone in the group remaining single, and Bonnie sneered at him because of it.

Klaus was the last to say anything, He held his glass to the center of the table. "Learning to trust," he declared, passing Caroline the quickest glance, she almost missed it. Everyone brought their glasses to the middle, gently clinking them together. As the glasses were coming back to them, Kol waited. He moved his glass to his lips like everyone else, but spoke quickly as the champagne entered everyone's mouths. "And you all treat me like a king!" he said super-fast before taking his own drink.

Nearly all of them frowned at him as they swallowed. Bonnie set her glass down. "Yeah, I'll pass on that last one," she said in a sassy voice.

"Yeah, and I'll give you a parking ticket," he said in the same voice as her, mimicking her. Suddenly Kol jumped and groaned. "Ow! You son of a bitch," he grumbled to Finn.

"Respect," Finn said simply.

Kol set his glass down defiantly. "She started it!" he informed Finn in a loud voice.

Rose set down her glass as well. "How about we hear more about you ladies?" she offered, switching topics. "I'm actually interested in hearing how much you know about your bloodline, Elena," she said with a forced smile.

Elena pulled some of her hair behind her ear. "Not very much," she shyly chuckled. "I just know that Katherine was my grandmother. _Is_ my grandmother. But that's all I really know about the Petrova doppelgangers."

"You know their last name, that's a start," Finn pointed out.

"But the finish isn't until way down the road," Kol muttered. His face brightened up suddenly as he got an idea. "Here's a bit of trivia to give you a good shove down the knowledge road we seem to be using as a metaphor – Elijah dated Katherine when she was human."

"What!?" Caroline couldn't help but blurt out. But it was okay since Bonnie had done the exact same thing.

Elijah took a deep breath, trying not to strangle Kol. "It's in the past. It was no more than a few romantic glances," he reassured them.

Klaus took a sip of his drink. Almost right after he swallowed, he spoke. "He slept with her on more than one occasion," he said matter-of-factly.

Rose audibly gasped and turned to look at Elijah. "With Katherine?" she exclaimed in an insulted tone. She wasn't the only one that was shocked. Elena looked like she was rejecting the information being given to her, Finn looked pleased with himself, Kol was laughing because he loved that he and Klaus had both ganged up on the eldest, and Caroline was watching Elena, hoping she didn't snap.

Luckily, no one could get into too big of a hatsful argument because they were all interrupted. "Um, excuse me?" Almost all of them turned their heads in synch, glaring at the waiter that had dared step into their conversation. Cooper looked like he might crap his pants at any second under all the intense eyes. "Um…we had a bit of a…explosion in the back, so your food might not be ready for another hour or so." He nodded timidly, not knowing what else to do. "And also…" He looked down at his hands. "Others are complaining about a noise disturbance at this table…"

All of them looked at him, each of their faces changing into a different mood. Klaus looked ready to stand up and punch someone (calmly, though, like he might straighten his jacket out before and after hitting them). Bonnie looked like she was in love; Elena looked embarrassed about being scolded; Kol for some reason smirked; Caroline watched Cooper as she licked the front of her teeth in annoyance with him; Elijah folded his hands in his lap, showing his disappointment and relief that they were off the Katherine topic; Finn didn't seem to mind, it happens. And then Rose, she nearly pulled on her vamp face, but she managed to block her slip with her hand by pulling her bangs out of her face.

"Someone's not getting a tip," she sang as she sat back and calmed herself.

"Look, I'm sorry. It's not my fault. Or the restaurant's–" Cooper tried to tell them, but never finished his thought.

Kol gently hit his hand on the table in a defiant way. "You're right. This is Santa Claus' doing. Where is the fat man?" he asked while looking around. "I need to have a word with him…"

Caroline and Bonnie couldn't help but chuckle. But because it was a serious atmosphere, the chuckles escalated to poorly hid cackles. Kol was smiling at Bonnie, proud he had finally made the stubborn girl laugh.

Elijah looked around Caroline at the waiter. "Of course it's not your fault. But, while we wait, would it be possible for you to make up for this little situation by getting the dance area crossed off for us for fifteen minutes or so?" he instructed more than requested.

Cooper frowned. "Crossed off? Like, just for you eight?"

"Precisely," Elijah said with a stern face.

"Y-yeah. I'll see what I can do…" he said as he turned to leave.

Klaus watched him until he was far enough away for comfort. "The dance area?" he questioned Elijah right away. "What for?"

Kol narrowed his eyes in that _Are you kidding me?_ way he did. "So we can all go lie down and take a nap, Nik. That's why," he snapped.

Klaus completely ignored his brother and waited for Elijah's answer. Elijah shrugged slightly. "I thought it would be a good way for us to truly connect."

Bonnie kinda chuckled. "I can't really dance."

"And we probably don't know the dances you guys know, anyway," Elena threw in.

Finn waved off their comments like they were nothing. "We can fix that," he reassured them.

Elijah nodded at Caroline as she frowned at them all. She took his hint and slid out of the booth, standing off to the side awkwardly as Elijah and Klaus both got out. Elena and Bonnie followed suit, not wanting to be left out. "Everyone," Elijah started to instruct. "Find a partner." He turned and began walking away. Rose followed him, and that's what completely captured Caroline's attention. Elijah looked back over his shoulder as he walked between other tables of people. He looked at Rose and everything seemed to go into slow motion for Caroline as she watched him move his hand back and gently take Rose's.

Kol had sarcastically bowed to Bonnie, who sneered at him and rolled her eyes. "No?" he said to her. And then he moved past her and held his hand out to Elena. Elena slowly took it, and he walked her formally after Elijah. Finn had made to offer Caroline a dance, just because she was standing closer to him, but Klaus held his hand up to Finn, telling him no and he stepped into Caroline's eyesight, blocking Elijah and Rose off from her view. So Finn moved to take Bonnie to the area they were all headed. Klaus bowed his head at Caroline. "Care to dance?" he offered.

Caroline nodded her head to the side. "Do I have a choice?" she reminded him.

He smiled as he turned and brought his arm up for her. She sloppily hooked her arm in his and followed behind Elena on their way to the dance area. Elijah was already standing in a dancing position with Rose, and they looked like they were brushing up on their dancing steps. Kol and Elena were standing around awkwardly because Elena had no idea what the hell she was supposed to be doing. She frowned at him as he took her hand in his and placed his other hand around her back.

"What are we doing? I can't dance," she tried telling him.

"Okay, listen to me," he said, looking straight into her eyes. "You know every step to every dance known to man," he told her.

She slowly smiled. "Holy crap. I know what's going on!" she exclaimed.

Kol tilted his head up to the ceiling and shook it back and forth enthusiastically while practically singing, "Looovely!"

Elijah looked around, avoiding Rose's eyes just as she was his. "I'll remind you that you can still move out of the duplex. It would save us an entire year of heartbreak and fights–"

"Elijah, I'm not moving out," Rose told him for the twentieth time. "We're adults. We should be able to handle all of this."

"Yes, that's why this has gone on for over two centuries…"

Bonnie frowned at Finn as he looked dead into her eyes. He'd told her he was about to compel her, which was why she was frowning. It was just unusual. It made her think of a vampire coming up to someone and going, "Now, hold still. I'm going to fuck with your mind. Are you ready? You sure? Okay, here I go…."

But surprisingly, the way Finn compelled her was polite and completely normal. "It's an old waltz of ours. Very simple. And you know every step to it," he informed her.

Bonnie nodded. "Alright, cool." She bobbed her head up and down as she "casually" looked around at the others (Kol). Much to her enjoyment, he just happened to be making a fishy face in her direction. When their eyes locked they immediately turned away, not wanting to be caught.

Klaus slowed down and took Caroline's hand in his. He held her in the dancing pose everyone else was in. Caroline looked uncomfortable.

"Do you waltz?" Klaus asked.

"Um..I only know one dance," she said timidly. "And I'm a vampire so…Should I just sit this one out? I'm just going to be making a mess out of the entire thing if I try to dance," she laughed as she slowly pulled away from him.

Klaus completely ignored her and just put his arm further around her waist. "You're a vampire. That changes nothing," he brushed off the thought problem.

"I can't be compelled," she reminded him.

Klaus smiled as he looked into her eyes. "You know the dance, Caroline." He was starting to sway back and forth with her, unnoticeably inching closer with every step.

Before Caroline could act amused and question him, music started. All of the Originals began with every beat of the first measure, but when the fourth beat hit, they all stopped. "What the hell!?" Kol asked as he looked up to where the orchestra was set up. "Do you not know what a damn waltz is?"

But Finn was taking control of the situation. "Three-four, please," he requested. The people nodded their understanding. Elijah and Rose had never untangled their fingers when they turned to the orchestra. Klaus hadn't even let go of Caroline at all; just turned his head to look at the problem. Kol grumbled under his breath as he turned back to a laughing Elena.

The music started back up again, and everything finally went smoothly. Bonnie kept up with Finn nicely. "So, the Bennet bloodline? Are you practicing magic, then?" he asked, truly intrigued.

"You could say that, yeah. I'm not very good, though."

Finn looked around. "Would you be able to give that man a beard?" he asked, nodding with his chin at someone that was watching the show.

Bonnie bit her lip and narrowed her eyes at him. And sure enough, he started growing hair from his chin. It didn't stop growing until it was a good six inches. Bonnie laughed along with Finn as they continued waltzing across the floor.

Caroline stared down at their feet as Klaus guided her around. She could feel Klaus' eyes on her, and knew she would blush if she made eye-contact. "You're quite the dancer," he complimented.

She snorted. "Only because you just compelled me to be," she reminded. She finally lifted her eyes to his, only to have her heart skip a beat by how blue they looked up close.

"No, love. I taught you the steps, you already had the moves," he flattered her, and she slowly started to bashfully smile.

"He won't stop staring at you," Elijah told Rose in a distasteful tone.

"Nor will you him," she pointed out as she watched Elijah.

"What right does he have?"

"As much right as you. And more, actually. He had me first, remember?"

Elijah took his eyes off Finn and back to Rose. "You chose me," he tried to tell her.

"Nope," she denied. "You kidnapped me."

"'Took you away with me' is a more accurate term."

"'Against my will' completes the term." Elijah sighed and looked away, knowing she wouldn't give in so he might as well not try.

Elena frowned at Kol. "Do you have a thing for Bonnie?" she asked out of nowhere.

He almost gasped. "What? No. No." He shook his head while denying over and over. He even looked to the left to glance at Bonnie for a second. "Absolutely," he turned back to Elena, "not." But then he realized what he'd seen and looked back. Bonnie's arm had gotten tired from resting on Finn's tall shoulder, but Kol didn't know that. So when she brought her arm down to rest around his bicep, Kol's expression went angry.

Elena followed his gaze. A smile split her face. "Oh my God!" she exclaimed. "You do!" That was loud enough to get Bonnie and Finn to look over. Kol quickly hissed at Elena to shut up and spun them so that he could hide from their gaze behind Elena.

"Want to say that a little louder? I don't think Canada heard you," he snapped.

But before Kol could get any more upset and embarrassed, he had to spin Elena off to Finn and then turn around to catch Rose. He calmed down at the sight of his close friend. "Hey sexy," he winked at her.

Caroline didn't register who she was dancing with because the picture of Klaus kissing her hand before he let her go was still making her smile. "You seem flattered," Elijah noticed.

Caroline finally got her head on and chuckled. "Klaus is…" she exhaled, "quite the charmer."

"Only when he's taken with someone…"

Caroline smiled even brighter, but lowered her head to hide it a bit.

Finn gave Elena a comforting smile. "Hello, Elena," he greeted.

She nodded at him, biting her lips together. "Hi," she said back.

Finn raised an eyebrow at her. She watched him in return. Everything was awkward for a few moments and then he spoke. "Forget my name?"

"Sorry!" she moaned back at him.

"Don't be. 'Finn' is a very long and complicated name; I understand." Elena laughed at him, feeling relaxed.

Klaus tilted his head at Bonnie. She frowned. "Why do you keep looking at me like that?"

"Maybe I like you," he suggested.

She shook her head. "No, you don't look at me like _that_. And we both know it."

"Very well. I'm interested in how you're the only one that seems completely comfortable around us Originals."

She shrugged. "I don't know. You just don't seem so threatening to me," she said with a 'tough luck' look on her face.

"Well then you obviously haven't taken into thought the way we act when we're upset," he brought to mind.

"Yeah," Bonnie said sarcastically. "I'm sure Kol's terrifying."

"You'd be surprised." With that, he spun her off to Elijah, who'd just let Caroline go to Kol.

Kol went from smiling at Rose to giving Caroline a cocky look. "Why hello there."

"Hi," Caroline replied to him, moving her feet on the third beat of the song with Kol. "So you and Rose…"

"You claim to be a matchmaker, figure it out," he said with a bit of sass in his voice.

Caroline frowned at him, not liking the attitude. "Fine. You guys are best friends. Nothing romantic at all." She gave him a smug smile.

Kol gave her a suspicious look.

Klaus noticed Elena's uncomfortable face and tilted his head at her. "Something wrong, darling?"

Elena barely glanced up at him. "No, nothing…"

Klaus looked up and around the room. "Come on, just say it."

Elena took an awkward moment before licking her lips. "I've heard stories about you trying to kill doppelgangers…" Klaus raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you going to kill me?"

"Don't give me a reason to, doll, and we won't have a problem," he said with a fake reassuring look.

Bonnie smiled at Elijah. "I respect you," she informed him randomly.

Elijah raised his eyebrows. "And I you, for being so straight forward. What brought this up?"

Bonnie shrugged. "I don't know." That was it for talking until, "Did you know the original Bennet witch?"

Elijah nodded. "I did indeed. Lovely woman. She hated me, though."

Bonnie was smiling. She hoped she could learn about her family from him. "Well, I don't think that's something that runs in the family."

"Let's hope not," he slightly smiled back at her.

"Elijah does not approve of your staring," Rose smiled at Finn.

"Elijah does not approve of _us_," he pointed out.

"And what are your thoughts on the situation?" she asked with her eyebrows raised.

Finn inhaled, thinking of what words to use. "I think you should forget about him and come back to me."

Rose shook her head. "You're both just so intent on being selfish."

"When it comes to love, yes. We are."

Rose watched him with a look that said she was worried about them both before turning away to Klaus.

"Giving you a hard time again?" Klaus asked, immediately recognizing her distressed face.

"Just the usual problems…"

"I'd say I was sorry, but I'm not. Not if they're holding on to you for love. I can't pretend to be upset with them for finally finding what they'd long forgotten." Rose sighed at him, knowing he was right – and that she was screwed.

Kol and Bonnie weren't speaking, just watching each other carefully. But as he watched her, he decided maybe he should make her a little more comfortable. "I think you're very pretty," he said randomly.

"Where's this coming from?" she questioned.

"My opinion," he frowned at her like she was crazy.

"You have an opinion now?"

"Why are you so mean to me?"

Caroline smiled at Finn. "Hi," she greeted awkwardly.

"Caroline," he addressed back. "Are you enjoying yourself?" he asked, bringing up small talk.

She nodded her head to the side. "You could say that, yeah."

"Mind if I tell you something personal?" he asked randomly, but seemed to have been waiting to bring it up.

Caroline frowned. "Sure, if you want…"

Finn twitched an eyebrow. "You mustn't repeat it," he said, making sure she knew the protocol.

Caroline nodded. "Naturally."

Finn leaned down to her ear and said slowly and quietly, "Niklaus has not shown interest in a woman for nearly four hundred years. Dwell in every second."

Caroline's face started to burn and she felt her stomach jump at the words. "How do you know he's showing interest in me?"

"A blind man could see the current waves passed between the two of you."

Although Elena had acted timid with the other brothers, she actually could not take her eyes off Elijah. Elijah was paying attention to Rose, trying to hear Klaus, but he was speaking so low that it was impossible. Elijah felt Elena's eyes on him and he looked down at her. He gently smiled at her. "Yes?" he asked in a low tone.

She shook her head to say 'nothing.' Elijah raised an eyebrow. "What are you watching so intently?"

"You," she answered vaguely.

"Have I done something that displeased you?" he checked.

Elena smiled and shook her head again. "No. Nothing. Just looking."

Elijah was still smiling slightly, like he was impressed somehow. He took exactly a second to look at every detail of her face. "And what are you finding?"

Elena inhaled shallowly, not wanting to answer. Luckily, she didn't have to because he started turning away from him back to Kol.

Elena stopped in Kol's arms with a small smile on her face.

Rose spun into Elijah with a regretful feeling under her skin.

Bonnie was happy to get away from Kol as she stopped dancing with Finn on the last beats of the song.

And Caroline looked down at her feet again when she returned to Klaus' arms. Knowing what Finn had told her, she felt like she was under pressure. She didn't want to be the first girl Klaus liked since year 100. What if she disappointed him? What if she wasn't good enough?

"Something wrong, love?" Klaus asked tenderly.

Caroline glanced up at his eyes before looking around at everyone else. They'd started relaxing and letting go now that the dance was over. She took her hand from his as she turned back to him. "No, nothing." She gave him a forced smile. "Thanks for the dance…"

Klaus nodded, catching her vibe of something not being right in her mind. Elijah turned to them all. "There," he said like they'd achieved something. "Now we know one another just a bit more."

They all stared at him for a moment, like he was pathetic for saying that. Then almost simultaneously they all turned and mumbled something under their breath about how he was full of it and they hadn't achieved anything as they walked back to their booth. Elijah held his hands out in question. But no one turned back, so he just sighed, dropped his hands and followed them, nodding at some man with a beard as he passed.

* * *

**Thank you guys so much for the positive responses! Sorry for taking so long with the chapters. Please review! Love hearing from you!**


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